Every year, the Pope meets with the Roman Curia to traditionally exchange Christmas greetings. But more than the usual holiday pleasantries, Pope Francis had a little more something in mind, taking advantage of the audience available to him speak about the ills of the Church in an effort to bring about reformation.
Specifically, he warned against 15 "ailments and temptations" that the priests, cardinals and bishops have to watch out for while governing the Vatican. While the Pope was addressing the Curia, he did not exclude himself from those who would benefit from an examination of the self.
"I once read that priests are like aeroplanes: they only make the news when they crash, but there are many that fly. Many criticise them and few pray for them. It is a very nice phrase, but also very true, as it expresses the importance and the delicacy of our priestly service, and how much harm just one priest who falls may cause to the whole body of the Church," said Pope Francis.
The 15 ailments and temptations the Holy See was talking about included:
1.The sickness of considering oneself indispensable, immune or immortal
2.Excessive industriousness or "Martha-ism"
3.The sickness of spiritual and mental hardening
4.The ailment of excessive functionalism and planning
5.The sickness of poor coordination
6.Spiritual Alzheimer's disease
7.The ailment of vainglory and rivalry
8.Existential schizophrenia
9.Gossip, grumbling and chatter
10.The sickness of deifying leaders
11.The disease of indifference towards others
12.The illness of funereal face
13.The disease of accumulation
14.The ailment of closed circles
15.The disease of exhibitionism and worldly profit.
When asked for a comment about the Christmas greeting to the Curia, Vatican spokesperson Fr. Thomas Rosica said the Pope's words are clear, speaking for themselves and requiring no interpretation.
"Now and then in our religious history, prophets arise to call us back to our origins, our roots and also our intended mission. That is what Pope Francis is doing. His words apply not only to the Roman Curia at the Vatican but to the entire Church throughout the world. His words are also valid for many institutions in the world today that lose sight of their original mission," he added.
Pope Francis was elected in March 2013. Before that, the Argentinian was an outsider to the bureaucracy in the Vatican. He is also the first non-European Pope in over a millennium.
